


Shenanigans: A Christmas at Longbourne Edition

by aparticularbandit



Series: A Christmas at Longbourne: The Extended Edition [2]
Category: Jane the Virgin (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-03
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2020-06-03 05:46:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19457608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aparticularbandit/pseuds/aparticularbandit
Summary: Additional or extended scenes from A Christmas at Longbourne.  May include a blooper reel.





	1. Additional Luisa/Raf Scene

Luisa heard the phone ringing just as Mia started out the front door, and she hurried her daughter outside before pulling off her tan leather gloves and curling up behind the front counter. “Longbourne Inn, the premier hotel in Longbourne, home of the glowing fish – this is Luisa speaking. How may I help you?”

“Hey, Luisa, it’s Raf.”

All at once, a smile lit Luisa’s face, and she relaxed against the counter. “Hey, Raf. What’s up?”

There was some clicking and clacking in the background from his end of the call – he must be at a computer or something – that continued as he responded. “Just checking in with my favorite sister.”

“It’s Christmas, Rafael, cut the bullshit.” Luisa began to wrap the phone’s cable around one finger. She _could_ have upgraded it to a more modern or cordless phone when she bought the hotel, but she’d thought the older phone was more in keeping with the inn’s old town charm. “You always have a reason when you call.”

“Your Christmas present from me should be arriving today,” Rafael said, and she could see him on the other end, finally relaxing, leaning back in what she knew was a huge black leather chair – all plush and modern and _comfortable_ – with his arms crossed and a big smile on his face.

Luisa’s lips pressed together in a thin little grimace. “Please tell me you didn’t do the _overbooking_ thing again.”

“No, I’m looking at the shipping for the present I bought you online and it _should_ be arriving off the truck today. Do you get trucks up there?”

“I’ve told you a thousand times we do.”

“And I’ve forgotten every single one of those times.” There was a loud creak in the background – if he wasn’t leaning back in that huge hotel manager’s chair, he was now. “How’s Mia doing?”

Luisa glanced over to the front-facing windows. Outside, Mia was scuffing her pink boots in the snow, hands pushed into her coat pockets. Then she seemed to realize something and turned to face the window. She gave Luisa a bright grin then dropped so that she couldn’t see her.

“She’s doing okay,” Luisa answered. “I think she’s building a pile of snowballs to attack me with when I get outside.”

“Outside?” Rafael echoed. “Where are you going?”

“We were thinking of going to Dee’s for hot chocolate and cookies, but if my present is arriving today—”

“You can’t open it right now, Luisa!” Rafael said with a frustrated huff. “You have to wait until Christmas.”

Luisa grinned. Rafael sounded just like he had when he was a little kid, and she remembered him the first Christmas after Elena had left, arms crossed and kicking his shoes and stamping his feet at the idea that his sis’er (he’d had _such_ trouble with t sounds) would get to open her Christmas present early. She’d been joking with him, and his reaction had been so adorable that she’d grabbed him in a big hug and given him kisses all over his face while he’d tried to get away (because no five-year-old boy likes getting kisses from his older sister). “Don’t worry,” she said with a chuckle, “I’ll place it under the tree.” She stopped, gazing at the front door again and sighing. “When we get a tree.”

“You don’t have a tree yet?”

“We’ve been busy!” Luisa said, trying to defend herself. “And it’s not like anyone will be here to see it. Because you aren’t coming up and you didn’t send me anyone again. Right?”

“After last year—”

“ _Last year was horrible._ ” Luisa groaned. “You sent me an _entire family_ , Raf!”

“I didn’t know that until after they left! We had a new clerk, and all he saw was pretty woman without a ring on her finger who seemed to be alone, and he started into the gig without the appropriate time measures—”

“ _Raf, you shouldn’t be doing that at all._ ” Luisa crossed her arms, even though he couldn’t see it. “Someday, someone who works hotel is going to catch wind of this, and you’re going to get in trouble.” She heaved a huge sigh. “And _I_ might get in trouble, too, and Mia and I are _happy_ here.”

“You’re not that happy, Lu.”

Luisa could see her brother on the other end of the phone leaning forward, elbows on his desk, trying to meet her eyes, and even though he wasn’t really there, she looked away, as though that would help matters. “We’re happy, Raf.”

“You’re _lonely_.”

“I’ve got Allison!” she said, a little too quickly, and she caught that mistake as much as she was certain that her brother did. “I mean, I don’t _really_ have Allison, and I don’t _want_ Allison, and Mia doesn’t exactly _like_ Allison, but she’s around, and she’s friendly, and we’ve got friends here, so it’s…. It’s _enough_ , Raf.”

There was a small silence on the other end of the phone, followed by another sigh. “You deserve better, Lu. You really do.”

“Yeah, well, I had better, and a drunk driver took her away from me, so maybe that’s not really any of your business, is it?” Luisa couldn’t keep the bitterness from creeping into her voice, the anger that still felt so hot, even after four years. Her own reaction to the events hadn’t helped matters much, but that wasn’t something they needed to get into now. She sighed. “Sorry. You don’t deserve that.”

“Neither do you.”

“Please, Raf, stop.” Luisa glanced outside. “Look, I think I need to—”

There was the sound of something like a sharp knocking on the other end of the call. “Hold on, Lu,” Raf said, and then there was an unpleasant little tune. She’d been put on hold. _Raf called her, and here he was putting her on hold._ She waited a few minutes, tapping her fingers on the counter, and just when she was about to give up and hang up on him, the tune ended. “Sorry about that. Little problem downstairs I needed to take care of.”

“No, no, I get it. You’re busy.”

“Not too busy to call you. And maybe I’ll come up and visit this year. Petra can keep things running while I’m gone.” He grinned – she could see it, even though they weren’t together. “Or I can bring her and the kids with me. I’m sure they’d love to see you.”

“Just seeing you would be fine. I can’t take both of you right now – they can’t afford to lose you.” Luisa looked down to fingers hopelessly tangled in the phone cord. “Maybe Mia and I will put off hot chocolate and cookies until later. We should decorate. And she’ll love waiting for the truck to come in with our presents.”

“Hey, I just said _your_ present—”

“Some of the ones I ordered are coming in today, too,” Luisa said with another grin. “And, hey, it’ll make the hot chocolate taste sweeter, won’t it?”

There was another knock on the other side of the phone. “Look, Lu, I’m sorry, but I have to—”

“Don’t worry about it.” Luisa leaned back. “Go take care of your hotel. It’s nice that you were thinking of me.” She grinned. “And I’ll text you when your present gets in.”

“Don’t open it!”

“Not until Christmas!” they said in unison, and Luisa was laughing as she hung up the phone. It certainly helped the ache of being reminded of her late wife – not that she ever truly forgot – and with the objections she was sure Mia would raise to waiting on Dee’s.

But she was the mom here.

…and Mia was going to pelt her with snowballs as soon as she got outside, so really, who was the one losing here?


	2. Original Ending of Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As those of you who follow me on tumblr (@aparticularbandit) know, I did end up doing a lot of rewriting for the end of chapter 3. This is the original ending - with a little bit of lead up. Allison's scene is significantly shorter (ish), and, ah, this is definitely not Hallmark cheesy (which was the primary reason for the change - I drum this up as Hallmark Christmas movie, I kind of wanted to stick with that).

“You do what you have to do to make sure you survive,” Rosa said. Her voice was tighter than she intended, but she couldn’t stop herself. “My stepmother probably knows your father. She used to run hotels, but now she’s in the business of making sure they’re run correctly.” The fingers of her free hand tapped along her leg. “I need to remember to call her to look into the _overbooking_ situation – the hotels in Miami shouldn’t be treating their customers that way, and they shouldn’t rely on you to take care of the customers when they kick them out.”

Luisa was oddly silent. “Do you wish you’d stayed down there?” she asked, finally, her voice still and soft.

Rose turned to her and noticed that Luisa was still looking down into her lap, fiddling with her fingers. She brushed Luisa’s hair back out of her eyes. “No.”

But Luisa still didn’t look up. “Are you sure?” She continued to fiddle with her fingers. “Or are you just saying that because _I_ asked?”

“Luisa.” Rose lifted the other woman’s head again very gently. “I’m glad to be here. I can be happy with the final result even if I’m not happy with the situation that led to it.”

Instead of nodding, Luisa turned so that she was just against Rose’s shoulder. She glanced to Rose’s eyes then quickly back down. “And what,” she started, “is the final result?”

“I don’t know.” Rose watched the other woman carefully. “I guess that all depends on how our date goes.” She smiled, and then her head tilted ever so slightly to one side. “Our _not_ date,” she corrected.

“And how do you want that to go?”

Luisa bit her lower lip as she looked up again, then her tongue swiped across her lip, gaze drifting to Rose’s lips before forcibly moving back to her eyes. The fingers in her lap were finally still, almost as though they were waiting for something. But they held themselves together so tight that her knuckles were a bright white.

Instead of speaking an answer, Rose broke the distance between them and ever so gently captured the other woman’s lips with her own. The kiss was soft, chaste, and she broke it without moving away, close enough to still feel Luisa’s breath. Her eyes searched the other woman’s. “Ok?”

Luisa nodded, brushing their noses together, and gave a soft hum of ascent. She raised her hand, fingers almost touching Rose’s cheek, and then hesitated. It hovered there for a moment.

Then Rose covered Luisa’s hand with her own and carefully brought it over to rest against her skin. “It’s ok,” she whispered. “You’re okay.”

At first, Luisa didn’t move when Rose released her hand. Her eyes searched Rose’s, and then her hand slowly began to move, fingers spreading first to cup Rose’s cheek, then ever so slowly tracing her skin, brushing against her jaw, thumb drawing a single line down Rose’s lips, inching them apart. Her eyes were trained there, no longer uncertain, as she moved forward, lips meeting Rose’s again.

This time, under Luisa’s control, the kiss was much more hungry, much more desperate. She took Rose’s lower lip between her teeth and tugged, and Rose couldn’t help the soft pleased sound that bubbled from the back of her throat. She wrapped one arm around Luisa’s waist, and Luisa leaned forward. At first, it was only to move their bodies closer together, but soon, Rose found herself lying backward, propped against the arm of the couch with Luisa hovering over her. Luisa’s hand pushed its way through Rose’s curls, her nails scratching along her scalp, and when her other hand began to rest on Rose’s shoulder, just beneath her jacket, Rose moved to take the jacket off entirely, dropping it on the side of the couch. Then, when Luisa broke from her lips, she began to pepper them along Rose’s jaw, stopping only when—

_Ding!_

They both stopped. Rose’s hand rested on Luisa’s back, just between her shoulder blades, her floral patterned top smooth against her skin. She tried to still her breathing as Luisa lifted her head. “Is that the—”

“—front door,” Luisa murmured, her own hand resting on the thin strip of Rose’s skin where her shirt parted from her jeans. She rubbed her forefinger on the sensitive spot, tracing a circle, and grinned at the low hum it elicited. “I can ignore it.”

“What if it’s a customer?” Rose managed to say, surprising herself because she—didn’t _care_ , especially not right now. “Or Mia?” Much more incriminating, much more dangerous.

Luisa shook her head at the last one, brown hair brushing Rose’s exposed shoulders. “Mia would know to call first.”

“You should check to see who it is,” Rose whispered, leaning up just enough to press a soft kiss to Luisa’s cheek. “It might be important.”

“More important than this?”

“I can wait,” Rose breathed. Then her lips spread into another one of her iconic grins. “You go check, and I’ll….” Her eyes shifted away from Luisa to one of the hallways in her suite. “When you come back, I’ll be waiting on your bed.” She ran one finger down Luisa’s arm, smug at the low moan her words and actions were causing. “Sound good?”

“Why don’t we just _both_ go to the bedroom?”

There was another tingle of the bell over the door.

“Whoever it is, they might’ve just left.”

Then a much louder _ding_ from the front counter.

Luisa groaned again, this time much less pleasurably. “I’ll go. Maybe I can convince whoever it is to leave.”

“Or,” Rose began, brushing a hand through Luisa’s hair, “you take care of them, make money, and then come back and I’ll make you forget it ever happened. I can be a very good distraction when you want one.”

Luisa looked down. “I’m sure you can.” She gave Rose a quick kiss then rolled off of her, landing nimbly on the floor. It was only then that Rose noticed her feet were bare, though she’d assumed the smaller woman had been wearing heels. “I don’t know about forgetting it _ever_ happened. I’ve got a good memory. Brain like an elephant. But _much_ smarter.”

“And much cuter.” Rose reached over to playfully pinch Luisa’s ass as she walked past.

“Not now, dear,” Luisa said, thwacking Rose’s fingers. “I need to work. We’ll have much more time for that later.” She paused then turned, eyes wide. “That _is_ what you want, isn’t it? That’s not just me forcing you into something you don’t want.”

“Luisa. I pinched _your_ ass.”

“Right.” Luisa gave a little nod. “Sorry, it’s been a while, and—”

There was another ding of the bell on the front counter, followed by another much more rapid one.

“You should go,” Rose said, nodding towards the door to the suite. “Whoever it is sounds like they’re getting impatient.”

“Customers always are.”

Rose watched as Luisa continued through the door, shutting it softly behind her, and let out an easy breath of air. Hopefully whoever the customer was didn’t end up being as horrible as she’d been when she first arrived. Her hands ran down the thighs of her black jeans, and then she propped herself up off the couch.

Time to find Luisa’s bedroom. Shouldn’t be _too_ hard, right?

* * *

Luisa ran her hands down her skirt as she walked, trying to smooth the wrinkles out, and then brushed her fingers through her hair, hoping that Rose hadn’t mussed it up too terribly. She couldn’t feel any snags or tangles. By the time she made it to the end of the hallway, she’d moved her hands in front of her, trying not to fidget with her appearance, and had a bright smile on her face. It was hard not to smile when she kept thinking about what she might be doing later – however long it took to finish with the customer.

But when she saw who it was, her smile froze.

“Allison,” Luisa said, voice tight as she saw the woman hunched over the front counter. “What are you doing here?”

The brunette turned to face Luisa as soon as she heard her voice, and she gave an easy smile. “I came to apologize,” she said, and her head tilted to one side, the edge of her ponytail brushing along her shoulders. “For earlier. I should have checked the receipt.”

“You don’t need to apologize to me. You should be apologizing to Rose.”

“The redhead?” Allison gave a low groan. “She’s kind of an ass. And she didn’t tip! You should _always_ tip, even if your pizza girl’s head’s not screwed on straight!”

“I don’t always tip,” Luisa reminded her.

“Yeah, but you do _other things_.” Allison’s eyes slowly traced down Luisa’s body and back up, and she grinned. “You free? I don’t see Mia around anywhere. Does she miss me?”

Luisa didn’t have the heart to say that Mia didn’t really care that Allison hadn’t been around. “Mia’s off with one of her friends for a sleepover,” she said instead, and she stopped herself, hating herself for saying it.

“We could have a sleepover of our own, then.” Allison smiled, pleasant as she usually was around Luisa. “Or are you busy?”

“I’m a little busy right now,” Luisa said, hands fidgeting together. _Not_ that she normally minded Allison’s presence – even if Mia didn’t particularly care for her, she was a welcome addition when Luisa grew lonely or when she wanted a third person around or even when she just needed someone to watch her daughter while she took some time for herself. But right now—

Allison took a sharp breath. “Are you on a date?” she whispered, and a flicker of hurt passed through her eyes.

“No,” Luisa said, thanking herself for constantly telling herself that whatever she was doing with Rose was specifically _not_ a date so that she couldn’t be lying to the woman who she _wasn’t really_ seeing but often used for booty calls when she needed them (or who sometimes used her for them as well. when they were both _free_ , of course). “Not a date.” She ran her hands along the sides of her skirt. “Just wanted to dress up.”

“Needed a little you time while Mia was gone.”

“Yeah.” Luisa gave Allison a soft smile and stepped forward, touching her hand softly. “Maybe next week, okay? The hotel will be empty. It’ll just be us. Mia might be having a sleepover with someone else.”

“Mmmmm, sounds _nice_.” Allison leaned forward and gave Luisa a gentle kiss, one that Luisa allowed to linger until the other woman broke it off. “I’ll plan on next week then.”

“Next week,” Luisa echoed, watching as Allison turned away with a grin and left through the front doors. She let out a deeply held sigh as soon as Allison was gone, lowering her head and running her fingers over her forehead. Of all of the times for Allison to show up, this was _not_ the best. But it could have gone so much more poorly. As it was, at least Allison was gone, and Rose was—

—still in her room. Waiting for her on her bed.

Luisa couldn’t help but bite her lower lip, letting herself feel the sudden flush that ran through her body. She grinned and took a deep breath, holding onto the counter and giving it a squeeze to ground herself, to remind herself that this was _actually happening_ before letting an all-too-excited grin curve her lips. Everything in her wanted to run back to her suite, to her room, feet pounding on the floor like Mia’s did on Christmas morning when she knew that there were presents full of almost everything she wanted waiting for her if she just made it down quickly enough to unwrap them.

But Luisa didn’t want _Rose_ to hear that. She wanted to maintain a cool, composed exterior, even if her actions earlier had all but proven that she _did_ want her _very much_. But being too excited could be such a turn-off, and she _really_ didn’t want to do that. So she made sure to return to her room much more slowly, taking enough time to get back to calm down the slightest bit, even though her heart flipped in her chest as she shut the door behind her, flipped again as she made her way on bare feet down the hallway to her room. Even with Allison, even with the others she’d been sent before, she hadn’t felt nearly this excited, and she wasn’t sure why she was now, why somehow Rose made her feel more alive than any of the others – Carla, of course, excepted.

And when she got back to her room, Luisa could feel her heart fairly stop in her chest.

Rose lay stretched out on her bed, pants gone, long legs pale against her faded blue comforter. She was curved to one side, propped up by one elbow on the pillows against the headboard and tracing circles on the fabric – and Luisa silently thanked herself for taking the time to make the bed while preparing for their evening instead of leaving it with the comforter and sheets pulled back and rumpled. As soon as Luisa entered, however, she lifted her head, bright blue eyes meeting Luisa’s without a hint of being demure.

“Is this too much?” she asked, her voice smooth as churned butter.

Luisa swallowed and stepped forward, slow, toes curling beneath her as she approached her bed. She broke their held gaze first, eyes moving to Rose’s legs, and as she got closer, she could see the constellations of freckles covering them, how there were more on her thighs than the scarce offerings further down. It was instinct, pure and simple, that took over as she crawled onto the bed, one hand moving to one of Rose’s thighs without hesitating.

Rose grinned.

“No, I think,” Luisa’s hand curved up her skin, beneath the longer edge of her black shirt, to where she just brushed the lace fabric of the underwear she knew without seeing would be black, and began to trace circles on the lace with the tip of her finger, “I think this is perfect.” She looked up, and when she met Rose’s eyes, she noticed how much her pupils had grown with desire, how the black seemed to seep into the bright, light blue of her eyes, darkening them to what felt more like dusk than the bright dawn they normally held. Her hand moved a little higher to settle on Rose’s waist, her thumb sweeping light across her skin, and she felt Rose shiver.

“Cold?”

“No,” Rose answered, voice as dark as her eyes. “Quite the opposite.”

Luisa laughed and drummed her fingers on Rose’s skin, waiting for the accompanying shiver. “You’re _hot_?”

Rose glanced down and away. “I don’t think it would be very nice of me to say that.” Then she glanced up through her long lashes at Luisa, batting them once. “Aren’t you?”

“I’m surprised you even have to ask.” Luisa leaned down, and as she kissed Rose, she could feel the other woman’s hand brushing along her skin before resting in her hair. “Let me help you with that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously this ends in a completely different situation than the canon chapter 3. In the same manner, the beginning of chapter 4 starts with a completely different situation as well. Look forward to the original of that next week. ^^


	3. Original Beginning of Chapter 4

When Rose woke up the next morning, every inch of her body felt sore. She stretched her arms over her head then, bleary-eyed, curled a little closer to the woman next to her. She wrapped an arm around her waist then brushed her long, frazzled brown hair back and pressed a gentle kiss to her shoulder.

The woman stirred briefly, her closed eyes tightening, and she frowned in her sleep. With another kiss, her nose scrunched up.

A grin split Rose’s lips, and she bent to run her nose along the woman’s skin.

Then the woman gave a little huff and relaxed. One hand came to rest on the one Rose held curved about her waist, interlacing their fingers together, and gave it a little squeeze. Even in her sleep, the unconscious action put a smile to her lips, and she turned in Rose’s arms to face her, burying her face in her chest.

Rose couldn’t help but laugh, a light, bubbling sound, and she held her a little closer, scratching her nails soothingly along the slope of the other woman’s back. “Fine,” she murmured, bending down enough to kiss her forehead. “You can stay there a little longer.” Then she brushed her hair back again and lay her head down on top of the other’s, closing her eyes and returning to her slumber.

* * *

“Rose?”

She snapped awake again at the sound of her name, bright blue eyes no longer bleary, breathing rushed and anxious. As her eyes met those of the woman in her arms, Rose relaxed again, taking a deep breath and letting it out. “Hey.”

“Are you okay?” Luisa’s eyes were wide, confused.

“Yeah, I’m….” Rose brushed a hand through Luisa’s long hair, smoothing out the tangles when her fingers were caught on them. “Bad dream,” she lied, eyes flicking back to meet hers, smile easing across her lips. “Did you sleep well?”

Luisa nodded with a hum of agreement and pressed a gentle kiss to the edge of Rose’s jaw. “You’re going to want a scarf. Your neck’s all green and blue.”

“I believe that is _your_ fault.” Rose didn’t look down to see any of the other marks she knew Luisa had left behind – on her torso, on her chest, on her inner thighs – instead running a finger along Luisa’s neck. “It’s not fair that they don’t show up near as well on you.”

“Oh, it’s _definitely_ fair,” Luisa said with a fiendish smile. “I have a seven-year-old. Can you _imagine_ trying to answer _those_ questions?”

Rose ran the tip of her thumbnail on Luisa’s neck. “I can imagine.” Her eyes narrowed. “She won’t ask _me_ , will she?”

“ _Scarf._ ”

“Right.”

The idea didn’t sit well with her, though. Rose had always worn those marks with pride, but around a too nosy child and in a very small town, maybe it wasn’t the _best_ of ideas. “Would you have done any of that if I wasn’t leaving in a few days?” she asked, voice soft.

Luisa pressed her lips together and shook her head as a shadow passed through the room. “I don’t know,” she said, finally. “Probably not.” Then she glanced back up, fingers tracing Rose’s cheek. “Does that bother you?”

“No.”

Another lie. It _should_ have been the truth. Rose wasn’t sure why it wasn’t.

“Who was that?” she asked, finally, after a silence that lingered too long to be completely comfortable. “When we were on the couch, when you got up to leave—”

“ _You_ told me to leave.”

“—it can’t be a customer. You’d be awake earlier, doing breakfast.” As she spoke, Luisa turned away, looking down, and as she did so, Rose tried to follow her gaze. “Or was that just special for me?” she asked, grinning comfortably as she tried to meet Luisa’s eyes.

“No, I do that for all of my customers.” Luisa propped herself up with both elbows, pulling away from Rose. “Allison came by,” she said, finally.

“The pizza girl?”

“She wanted to apologize,” Luisa continued without answering Rose’s question.

Rose sat up, sheets curved comfortably about her chest. “She’s still not getting a tip.”

“She was apologizing to _me_ ,” Luisa said with a very pointed look in Rose’s direction. Then she looked away, running a hand through her hair. “It’s not important. She shouldn’t have been here at all. I didn’t—”

“Is she here often?” Rose asked, reaching over and placing a hand on Luisa’s. “Other than your…what did she say it was? Weekly cravings for that horrible pizza?” She tried to grin to help Luisa feel a little bit more relaxed, but the other woman wouldn’t look at her enough to see her expression.

“It’s not that bad,” Luisa said, rolling her eyes. “And yes, weekly. Mia likes it. We celebrate getting through the week. Sometimes with a movie. Sometimes Allison stays.”

Then there was silence.

“Ah,” Rose said, nodding once. She sat up a little straighter against the headboard, moving her hand away from Luisa’s. “You’re together.”

“ _No._ ” The answer was immediate, and Luisa turned to face Rose just as quickly, head whipping around towards her, and she reached out again to take Rose’s hand, running her thumb along her skin. “No. We’re not. You didn’t—”

“—doesn’t matter,” Rose said, her voice soft, an she offered Luisa a small smile and a shrug. “It’s Christmas season. That’s really all I’m good for.”

Luisa squeezed Rose’s hand then held tight to it. “Allison and I aren’t together. I just live in a very small town, and she’s the only one who….” Her voice faded, dropped off entirely, and she looked down. Then she took both of Rose’s hands in her own. “Allison is in love with the idea of me. She thinks she can step in and save the lonely widow woman and her kid by pretending to love her enough.” She leaned back against her headboard a little too hard, making a _thunk_ ing noise. “She really needs to get out of Longbourne.”

“I can arrange for that.”

Luisa looked at Rose, who was grinning up at her. “That’s not very nice, Rose.”

“Who said I was nice?” Rose’s grin grew as Luisa stuck her tongue out at her. “If she needs to leave, she needs to leave. I know some people—”

“ _Rose_.”

“—who could offer her jobs. _Good_ jobs.” Her eyes wandered over to the window. “A certain yodeling star might like the help.”

“You want to set her up with your ex.”

“ _No_ , I want _you_ to not have to deal with her.” Rose poked Luisa in the stomach once. “Even if she is nice to have around.”

Luisa shrugged and shook her head. “I don’t want you stepping in. It’s not like you – _or anyone else_ – is going to be here.” She straightened the sheets around her. “It’s a small town. We do what we need to do.”

“You hate it here.”

“I _love_ it here,” Luisa said, and her voice was so earnest as she spoke, her eyes so bright as she met Rose’s again, that it was impossible to think she believed otherwise. “I just sometimes wish that here was a little bit…better.”

“In terms of cute girls?”

“In terms of cute girls interested in other cute girls.” Luisa’s lips contorted into a pout. “You _do_ think I’m cute, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Rose said with a solemn nod. “Very cute. So cute, in fact, that I can’t resist—” And she leaned up, brushed her fingers across Luisa’s jaw, and guided her a little closer before kissing her. Instead of stopping at a reasonable, acceptable amount of time, she pressed a little further, hands moving through her hair to hold the back of her head.

“ _Rose_ ,” Luisa murmured against her lips in a semi-chiding tone, but she smiled as her fingers began to circle the other woman’s waist again. “If you keep going like this, you’re going to need a bigger scarf.”

“I can use a bigger scarf.”

“We were _having_ another _conversation_.”

Rose grinned. “But you like this better, don’t you?” she asked, brushing her nose against Luisa’s.

Luisa responded with a hum of approval. “I guess,” she murmured, “we should make the most of our time together before Mia gets back.” She ran a hand up Rose’s arm. “Would that be good customer service?”

“The absolute best.”

Luisa held back a little laugh. “Why don’t you show me how grateful you are, hm?” Her eyes lit up. “Since I’ve been so good, I think it’s the _least_ I deserve.”

“The very least,” Rose said before pressing another kiss to Luisa’s lips. As the other woman curved one hand around Rose’s neck, Rose leaned forward, lowering her back against the bed. A low sound broke through her as Luisa ran her leg along hers and then hooked it around her waist. “ _You_ ,” she said, very firmly, meeting Luisa’s eyes, “are going to be the one who needs a scarf when we’re done.”

Luisa grinned, eyes flicking down Rose’s body and back up. “Prove it.”

* * *

They stayed in bed for a long while, enjoying themselves and the pleasure of each other’s company, but eventually at least one of them had to get up for food. They made breakfast together – even if it was only bacon, a couple of biscuits, and two big bowls of cereal – and then took their food back to the bedroom, where they ate in bed – or tried to. Their food wasn’t made for sensually feeding each other, but they tried, laughing at each other and the idea of it as they did.

Everything felt simple and easy, and when the phone call came to let Luisa know that Mia was coming home, she sent Rose away from her room with only the simplest comment that she get dressed and come back downstairs to be with her. Instead of following her request, Rose went upstairs only long enough to gather more clothes and then returned to Luisa’s suite, where she joined her in the shower.

Which then, of course, took far longer than the hotel owner expected, even though she certainly enjoyed the companionship.

But, somehow, they were both ready to welcome Mia back when she returned, even if they were only ready by a few feeble seconds, Luisa with her hair pulled up in its normal untidy ponytail, a few strands hanging down around her face, not quite framing it, and Rose with her hair still damp, scrunched and spiraled, unable to go outside to greet the small child out of fear that her hair would freeze in the cold.

And before she went back upstairs to her room, Luisa reached out to brush Rose’s hands and leaned towards her with a soft whisper, “Longbourne’s town Christmas party is tomorrow. Come with me.”

Rose met her eyes long enough to whisper, “ _It’s a date_ ,” and then fled upstairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really regretted cutting out the Rose cuddling sleeping Luisa scene at the very beginning of chapter 4. The sleepwalking scene is also cute, BUT I missed the sleepy Luisa does not want to wake up scene.

**Author's Note:**

> Technically this isn't a deleted scene because I technically wrote it after posting chapter one. It does have a /little/ bit of extra information, but not anything necessary to the work itself, and, really, the necessary information is redundant in context of the whole.


End file.
